The Hindujas & the Swiss Standard of Care

There is no workplace more hazardous than the Indian home.

Ajay, 56, and his wife Namrata, 50, each got four-year jail terms/FACEBOOK

I wonder how many Indian domestic workers have fantasies about sending their employers to jail? If we went by the Swiss standard of care, most of us who employed domestic staff would be behind bars. And we would be extremely deserving of this punishment. The Hindujas are among Asia’s top 20 wealthiest families and four of them were just arrested for exploiting their live-in domestic workers at their fancy-shmancy mansion in Geneva.

In the Hinduja case, we are not as shocked that they were exploiting their staff as much as we are shocked that someone made them pay for it. Exploitation of domestic staff is an everyday phenomenon in this country, and most exploiters have a free pass.

I’m sure you’ve read about the terrifying torture and everyday casteism domestic workers face in our homes. “They hit me with sticks, rope… they hit me with a hot iron tong and used a blade to brand marks on my arm and lips. She would burn paper and light a matchstick and poke me with them… On one occasion, they tried to strangle me and threatened to kill me,” one teenage worker said last year. She was tortured for five months before she was rescued and sent to hospital to treat her multiple injuries. They gave her only one small bowl of rice to eat in the day and she was often so hungry she was forced to forage through the trash for more food.

Earlier this year I wrote about a report published by non profit Jagori on the way we treat domestic workers—a quarter of those surveyed said they were prohibited from using the same utensils as their employers; 18% had no access to food or water at their workplace; 13% didn’t get leave when they fell sick; and 40% were prohibited from using the same furniture as their employers. Many respondents used the phrase ‘malik’ (master) rather than employer.

There is no workplace more hazardous than the Indian home.

You can read my piece by clicking on the link: How Indians Are Endangering The Health of Their Domestic Workers: New Study

In 2021, as part of the #MeToo movement, some 3,000 domestic workers sent the then minister for women and child development a postcard that simply said: “As a woman domestic worker, I want a safe workplace.”

The Hindujas confiscated passports, made their staff sleep in a windowless basement, expected them to be available at all times and paid them way below what was is legally permissible in Switzerland. In a world where celebrity pets have their own bathrooms and personal chauffeurs, it’s not surprising that the Hindujas spent more money on their dogs than their domestic employees. See this, from one of many articles about the the lifestyles of celebrity pets.

“Socialite Paris Hilton created the ultimate home for her beloved pet dogs – a mini replica of her own home, which spans 300 square foot and has two floors. "My dogs live in this two-story doggy mansion that has air conditioning, heating, designer furniture, and a chandelier. Loves it," Paris said.

Read more here: 11 Pampered Celebrity Pets with Lavish Lifestyles We Could Only Dream Of

Even those of us who think we treat our domestic workers well, don’t. How many of us sacked our domestic workers during Covid or sent them on leave without pay as we posted blithely about how we were enjoying getting our hands dirty and doing chores we never usually did?

One campaign that has gained some popularity in the last few years is the domestic worker’s right to an annual bonus. Don’t call it ‘baksheesh’ or tip and think of it as evidence of your generosity. It’s a worker’s right.

“Many employers distribute their leftover Diwali sweets to their domestic workers after a week, you know. We don’t want your jhoota mithai," Sunita Rane, office bearer of the Delhi-based National Domestic Workers Union told me a few years back. “We deep-clean your homes before the festival and don’t clean ours because we have no time or energy left over. We leave our families and come to your homes on Diwali day and work when you host your parties and then you give us a hundred rupees for a job well done? Only 1% of employers give us new clothes at this time of year. The rest just give us their old clothes.”

Earlier this week the labour minister said a new legislation will soon be framed for the welfare of domestic workers. When the government does eventually get its act together to recognise the rights of these mostly female domestic workers, it will no longer be so easy for us to ignore the basics that they are entitled to: Weekly offs, fixed work hours, minimum wage, health security, safety, no arbitrary pay cuts, holidays, pension, a notice period, pregnancy leave and—most importantly— dignity of labour.

“We work from morning to night but you don’t let us go to the toilet in your homes. Many of you don’t even give us a cup of tea,” Renuka, a domestic worker told me a few years ago. In the new dawn, chai toh pilana hi padega.